the atomic number or neutron number of an exceptionally stable nuclide.
Origin
1945-50
British Dictionary definitions for magic numbers
magic number
noun
1.
(physics) any of the numbers 2, 8, 20, 28, 50, 82, and 126. Nuclides with these numbers of nucleons appear to have greater stability than other nuclides
2.
(chem) a number of atoms that is particularly stable in certain types of compound that have clusters of the same type of atom
magic numbers in Science
magic number
(māj'ĭk) Any of the numbers, 2, 8, 20, 28, 50, 82, or 126, that represent the number of neutrons or protons in strongly bound and exceptionally stable atomic nuclei. The existence of such stable nuclei is explained by assuming a shell structure for nucleons, much like the shell structure of electron orbitals around the nucleus.
Encyclopedia Article for magic numbers
magic number
in physics, in the shell models of both atomic and nuclear structure, any of a series of numbers that connote stable structure
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